Numinbah

1. The name Numinbah means ‘hold tight country’ from nyummin meaning ‘tight’ for the Aboriginals believed that the narrow valley held the mountains together.
  (Steele, J.G., Aboriginal Pathways in Southeast Queensland and the Richmond River, p60).

2.  An Aboriginal word meaning ‘place of devils’ (Walkabout magazine September 1958, pp34, 35)

 3. Should be N’yumminbah, the small midjim palm or walking stick palm ( Hanlon,W.E The Early Settlement of the Logan and Albert Districts, p238)

Location: Numinbah Valley is located in the south west of the Gold Coast. The valley is about 116 square kilometres in area and is the major water supply catchment of the Gold Coast.  The main valley  strikes north from the McPherson Range and is  enclosed to the southeast and southwest by the plateaux of  Springbrook and Beechmont. The area is characterised by  cleared valley floors with  some  grazing   land  stretching  up into the steep,  sharply defined sides of the valley.  The Nerang – Murwillumbah road runs along the valley floor adjacent to the tree lined banks of the Nerang River and its tributary creeks. The cliffs, narrow ridges, forested slopes and open farmlands combine to create   one of the most scenic rural areas in the Gold Coast Hinterland.

European Settlement: Settlement of the area is associated with timber getters moving up from the Tweed and Richmond Rivers in search of the  valuable  red cedar trees  in the 1870s. The timber resources of the area supported the economy of the local farming families and  supplied timber for  a number of  local and regional saws mills  well into the  20th Century. Dairies, banana plantations and beef  production, later tourism,  have played a significant role in the economic history  of the area and inevitably  have helped  to shape a cohesive community.

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